Instant twistopen can

ABSTRACT

A metal can now requires a key, an old-fashioned lever-type, a punch-type can opener, a pullring to open up a slot or to flip off the top, or an electric can opener machine, an expensive item. Possessed of the instant invention, the can may be easily opened by simply twisting off the lid on either end or both halves at the middle for nonliquid containing cans. Steel cans are assembled from a rolled up flat sheet and circular tops. In the TwisTOpeN cans this flat sheet is scored near the top and bottom edges and at the centerline to permit easy twisting off of either lid, or the top half, as desired, by hand when the can is opened. The easy-opening feature by twisting is handy at picnics or when a can opener is not available. The can itself, after opening, then becomes a mug in one case and two half-mugs in the other. Both are useful in themselves, especially on an outing. In an aluminum drawn can, the scores usually are made at the center and near the top to facilitate grasping when twisting off the top portion. However, it may be scored both top, bottom and center, as desired, like the steel can. The opening action takes but an instant as the lid or top portion shears off at the score mark selected and then, if necessary, is finally broken clear off at the weld line by repeated hinging action.

United States Patent 1 Brown 51 May 13,1975

[ INSTANT TWISTOPEN CAN [76] Inventor: Roland Clough Brown, 425

Stratford Ct., Del Mar, Calif. 92014 [22] Filed: Mar. 15, 1974 [21]Appl. No; 451,420

[52] US. Cl. 220/266 [51] Int. Cl B65d 41/32 [58] Field of Search220/27, 47, 48, 266; 222/541; 206/498; 215/32 [56] References CitedUNITED STATES PATENTS 2,073,941 3/1937 Lowen 222/541 3,216,562 11/1965Lockwood 206/498 Primary ExaminerGeorge T. Hall [57] ABSTRACT A metalcan now requires a key, an old-fashioned lever-type, a punch-type canopener, a pullring to open up a slot or to flip off the top, or anelectric can opener machine, an expensive item. Possessed of the instantinvention, the can may be easily opened by simply twisting off the lidon either end or both halves at the middle for nonliquid containingcans. Steel cans are assembled from a rolled up flat sheet and circulartops. 1n the TwisTOpeN cans this flat sheet is scored near the top andbottom edges and at the centerline to permit easy twisting off of eitherlid, or the top half, as desired, by hand when the can is opened. Theeasyopening feature by twisting is handy at picnics or when a can openeris not available. The can itself, after opening, then becomes a mug inone case and two half-mugs in the other. Both are useful in themselves,especially on an outing. in an aluminum drawn can, the scores usuallyare made at the center and near the top to facilitate grasping whentwisting off the top portion. However, it may be scored both top, bottomand center, as desired, like the steel can. The opening action takes butan instant as the lid or top portion shears off at the score markselected and then, if necessary, is finally broken clear off at the weldline by repeated hinging action.

12 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures INSTANT TWISTOPEN CAN The instant inventionrelates to a new and useful selfopening can of metal or plasticmaterial, much needed in the packaging industry for convenience of thepublic, and providing instant opening at less cost to manufacture thenscored fliptop or slottop cans requiring pullrings to open.

It is the primary object of the invention to enable the can user to opena can instantly without any other device such as a key or can openers ofany type.

In conjunction with the above primary object, it is also a significantobject of the invention to avoid the necessity of possession of any typeof can opener whenever a can is desired to be opened, especially anexpensive one like the electric-type can opener.

Likewise, another object of the invention is to save the time thatsometimes results from searching for a can opener instead of utilizingthe potential of the instant twistopen can itself.

Another important object of the invention is to save the cost of themetal and tooling used to make the pullrings and the scoring on fliptopand slottop cans.

A dependent object of the former important object is the elimination ofpullrings altogether from the litter caused by discarding them in publicplaces, lessening pollution thereby.

A further object of the invention is the elimination of the necessity ofany type of can opener, saving its cost thereby.

Still another object of the invention is the creation of either onelarge mug or two small mugs for use on an outing or picnic when each canis opened for use instead of paper cups or glasses, thus eliminatingtheir need and cost.

Again, an important object of the invention is the extreme simplicity ofthe opening operation. A twist of the wrist and it is done, even by afemale.

Yet again, the most important object of the invention is the sanitaryfeature. If the can be soiled before opening on the top or bottom bydust or worse, the clean opening of the twisted score mark directly tothe contents of the container eliminates any possibility ofcontamination of the contents as they are withdrawn from the can.Housewives and medical authorities will approve of this unique feature.After opening, use an instant Dial-A-Flow Cap! Basically, the inventionprovides for the utilization of a top, bottom or center score-markedcontainer which may be instantly opened when desired by twisting actionalong any chosen score mark near such mark. Usually the top is graspedand the top is twisted to either the right or left until it comes off.It may still hang on at the weld line. If so, it may be removed byrepeated hinging action of the top at this point until the weld linebrakes. This feature is useful, too, in that it prevents quick movementswhich could result in cuts from the sharp edges along the score mark incareless twisting and hinging movements. The can is now ready to emptyits contents into the bowl or pan. With liquids, it is better to openthe can over a bowl to catch any spills.

The instant twistopen can is an integral can opener in itself and noother tools or opener devices are re quired for the operation of gettingout the contents of the container.

In addition, the need for a can opener may be forever dismissed fromyour mind when packing for an outing or a picnic. Instead, just toss ininstant twistopen cans and relax! These, together with other objects andadvantages, which will become subsequently apparent reside in thedetails of assembly and operation as more fully hereinafter describedand claimed, reference being made to the accompanying drawing forming apart hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout and inwhich:

FIG. 1 is a full size broken top view of a steel material container forproduct contents, shown without the top press-embossed TwisTOpeNinstruction, or other opening and litter instruction, in a phantomannular area for the user, usually along with a tailless arrow,indicating directions of twist in an arc between the center and theperimeter of the said container;

FIG. 2 is a full size broken side view of the said container, showingthe weld line and the location of three score marks, suggesting variousopenings: near the top and bottom, for a lid removal opening, and at thecenter, for a center opening;

FIG. 3 is a full size broken bottom view of the said container, shownwithout the bottom press-embossed TwisTOpeN" in the phantom annular areaand the tailless arrow, like the said top view;

FIG. 4 is a full size end view of the flat development of thecylindrical part of the said container, showing three score marks;

FIG. 5 is a full size top view of the said flat development of thecylindrical part of the said container before forming, showing weld lapsat the top and bottom ends and the location of three score markssuggested for usual openings;

FIG. 6 is a full size, twice broken open, side view of an aluminum orplastic container for product contents, shown in half-section in itsbottom part with three score marks indicated for various openings asdesired. A full size top view of the said container is not shown sinceit is the same in size and shape as described above in FIGS. 1 and 3.

Referring now specifically to the drawing, in FIGS. 1-6, beginning atthe left top of the erect drawing in FIG. 1 there is shown a top cover 1and again just below in FIG. 2 said top cover is shown again along withthree score marks 2 and bottom cover 3, while in FIG. 3 the said bottomcover displays the phantom annular area 4 and the twoway arrow 5, thenabove again in FIG. 2 is shown the weld line 6 and the formed containerbody 7, now glancing to the right top of the erect drawing in FIG. 4 isshown the end view of the flat development of the said container bodywith three score marks, while just below in FIG. 5 is shown the top viewof the flat development of the said container body with weld laps 8, andfinally in the bottom right corner of the erect drawing is shown the toplid 9 of the formed container 10 with its three said score marks in FIG.6.

To assemble the self-opening can of any material, the usual pressoperations of blanking, stamping, scoring and forming, then welding andcrimping are utilized in pressed steel container production, whileblanking, stamping, drawing, scoring and crimping are usual in aluminumcontainer production, and molding is common in plastic containerproduction before final filling of the containers with products,crimping on the cover or lid and labeling. The label usually is narrowenough to reveal the top and bottom score marks and short enough toreveal the center and any other score marks to the user. For wrap aroundor coverall labels, holes are punched in the labels, usually near theends, to reveal the location of each selected score mark.

To open a can, the user grasps it around its cylindrical surface belowthe cover score mark with one hand and then grasps the cover rim withthe ends of the fingers and the heel of the other hand, usually over abowl if the contents are liquid to catch any spill on sudden opening,and twists the cover with the top hand while holding the can firmly withthe bottom hand. The can gives way along the score mark, where thesection is weakened by torsional stress, and the lid comes off cleanlyin aluminum and plastic cans without any weld line, while the cover insteel cans may still remain unbroken at the weld point, and is thenfinally broken off by repeated hinging action at the weld point. The canis now opened and the contents may be emptied, usually into a bowl, forfurther processing when cooking is required, or for instant use when nofurther processing is needed.

The remains of the cans are useful as receptacles for measuring outliquids or for use as mugs on outings and picnics. Covers and lids arediscarded. Where the center score mark is used, instead of the scoremarks near the cover or lid for opening by twisting action, the twoequal half size receptacles resulting from opening are found useful tooas mugs for children and twice the number of half the capacity. Nolitter from fliptops or pullrings occurs. By utilization of thereceptacles formed from TwisTOpeN cans, the chances of litter from wholecans is also reduced.

To avoid cuts from the sharp edges of the containers when the cover, lidor top half is removed by the twisting action of opening, care is takento open the can slowly and surely by twisting in either direction untilthe shear occurs at the score mark selected, then bending the cover backand forth at the weld point in steel cans, is repeated hinging action,slowly, until the cover is freed from the can. Thereafter, be careful ofthe sharp edges at the score mark and handle these edges with respectlike a knife. Emory cloth dulls sharp edges.

From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that a unique system forquickly opening any metal or plastic container, without the need of anyopening tool or machine, has been devised by means of the instant Twis-TOpeN scored container, soon to be featured on all cans. Containers arenormally made of steel, aluminum or plastic to which this unique openingsystem applies.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles ofthe instant invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changeswill readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired tolimit the invention to the exact fabrication and operation shown on thedrawing and described herein, and, accordingly, all suitablemodifications and equivalents may be resorted to, as, for example,non-cylindrical containers like sardine cans of square, rectangular oroval instead of circular cross-section as well as shorter or longerheight between top and bottom ends as desired, or plastic rather thanmetal material.

What is claimed is as follows:

1. An improvement on a fabricated metal container for product contents,consisting of a formed center part of length desired and ofgeometrically-shaped cross section, fitted with a top and a bottomcaptive cover part means to match the cross-section of the said centerpart, crimped onto the center part at each end, said center part withscored mark means at points desired around its outer surface to weakenthe section of the said metal thickness below the scoring for easybreaking under torsional stress from twisting action by the user betweenthe upper and lower portions of the said container, just above and belowa selected score mark, thus opening the said container and allowingaccess to its said contents, all without the assistance of any accessorydevice by the user except the said container itself.

2. The improvement of claim 1 except that the said captive cover partsare embossed in the metal so as to appear legibly on the outer surfacewith the opening instructions: TwisTOpeN, underlined with an arrowcarrying arrowheads at each end, both the instruction and the twowayarrow arranged in an area midway between the center and the rim of thesaid captive cover parts.

3. The improvement of claim 1 except that the score marks are locatednear each end of the said center part of the said container.

4. The improvement of claim 3 except that the tw said score marks arelocated at any points along the length of the said center part,including the center point, where the two said scored marks would becoincident and located equally far from the ends of the said container.

5. An improvement on a drawn metal container for product contents,consisting of a drawn bottom part, cutoff to the length desired and ofgeometricallyshaped cross-section, fitted with a top captive cover partmeans to match the cross-section of the said bottom part, crimped ontothe said bottom part at the open end, said bottom part with scored markmeans at points as desired around its outer surface to weaken thesection of the said metal thickness below the scoring for easy breakingunder torsional stress from twisting action by the user between theupper and lower portions of the said container just above and below aselected score mark, thus opening the said container and allowing accessto its said contents, all without the assistance of any accessory deviceby the user except the said container itself.

6. The improvement of claim 5 except that the said captive cover part isembossed in the metal so as to appear legibly on the outer surface withthe opening instruction: TwisTOpeN, underlined with an arrow carryingarrowheads at each end, both the instruction and the twoway arrowarranged in an area midway between the center and the rim of the saidcaptive cover part.

7. The improvement of claim 5 except that the said score mark is locatednear the top end only of the said bottom part of said container.

8. The improvement of claim 7 except that said score marks are locatedat any two points along the length of the said bottom part, includingthe center point, where the two said scored marks would be coincidentand located equally far from the ends of the said container.

9. An improvement on a molded plastic container for product contents,consisting of a molded bottom part of the length desired and ofgeometrically-shaped cross-section, fitted with a top captive cover partmeans to match the cross-section of the said bottom part, sealed to thesaid bottom part at the open end, said bottom part with scored markmeans at points as desired around its outer surface to weaken thesection of the said plastic thickness below the scoring for easy saidcontainer just above and below a selected score mark, thus opening tosaid container and allowing access to its said contents, all without theassistance of an accessory device by the user except the said containeritself.

10. The improvement of claim 9 except that the said captive cover partis embossed in the plastic so as to appear legibly on the outer surfacewith the opening instruction: TwisTOpeN, underlined with an arrowcarrying arrowheads at each end, both the instruction and the twowayarrow arranged in an area midway between the center and the rim of thesaid captive lO dent and located equally far from the ends of the saidcontainer.

1. An improvement on a fabricated metal container for product contents,consisting of a formed center part of length desired and ofgeometrically-shaped cross-section, fitted with a top and a bottomcaptive cover part means to match the cross-section of the said centerpart, crimped onto the center part at each end, said center part withscOred mark means at points desired around its outer surface to weakenthe section of the said metal thickness below the scoring for easybreaking under torsional stress from twisting action by the user betweenthe upper and lower portions of the said container, just above and belowa selected score mark, thus opening the said container and allowingaccess to its said contents, all without the assistance of any accessorydevice by the user except the said container itself.
 2. The improvementof claim 1 except that the said captive cover parts are embossed in themetal so as to appear legibly on the outer surface with the openinginstructions: TwisTOpeN, underlined with an arrow carrying arrowheads ateach end, both the instruction and the twoway arrow arranged in an areamidway between the center and the rim of the said captive cover parts.3. The improvement of claim 1 except that the score marks are locatednear each end of the said center part of the said container.
 4. Theimprovement of claim 3 except that the two said score marks are locatedat any points along the length of the said center part, including thecenter point, where the two said scored marks would be coincident andlocated equally far from the ends of the said container.
 5. Animprovement on a drawn metal container for product contents, consistingof a drawn bottom part, cutoff to the length desired and ofgeometrically-shaped cross-section, fitted with a top captive cover partmeans to match the cross-section of the said bottom part, crimped ontothe said bottom part at the open end, said bottom part with scored markmeans at points as desired around its outer surface to weaken thesection of the said metal thickness below the scoring for easy breakingunder torsional stress from twisting action by the user between theupper and lower portions of the said container just above and below aselected score mark, thus opening the said container and allowing accessto its said contents, all without the assistance of any accessory deviceby the user except the said container itself.
 6. The improvement ofclaim 5 except that the said captive cover part is embossed in the metalso as to appear legibly on the outer surface with the openinginstruction: TwisTOpeN, underlined with an arrow carrying arrowheads ateach end, both the instruction and the twoway arrow arranged in an areamidway between the center and the rim of the said captive cover part. 7.The improvement of claim 5 except that the said score mark is locatednear the top end only of the said bottom part of said container.
 8. Theimprovement of claim 7 except that said score marks are located at anytwo points along the length of the said bottom part, including thecenter point, where the two said scored marks would be coincident andlocated equally far from the ends of the said container.
 9. Animprovement on a molded plastic container for product contents,consisting of a molded bottom part of the length desired and ofgeometrically-shaped cross-section, fitted with a top captive cover partmeans to match the cross-section of the said bottom part, sealed to thesaid bottom part at the open end, said bottom part with scored markmeans at points as desired around its outer surface to weaken thesection of the said plastic thickness below the scoring for easybreaking under torsional stress from twisting action by the user betweenthe upper and lower portions of the said container just above and belowa selected score mark, thus opening to said container and allowingaccess to its said contents, all without the assistance of an accessorydevice by the user except the said container itself.
 10. The improvementof claim 9 except that the said captive cover part is embossed in theplastic so as to appear legibly on the outer surface with the openinginstruction: TwisOPeN, underlined with an arrow carrying arrowheads ateach end, both the instruction and the twoway arrow arranged in an areamidway between the center and the rim of the said captive cover part.11. The improvement of claim 9 except that the said score mark islocated near the top end only of the said bottom part of the saidcontainer.
 12. The improvement of claim 11 except that the said scoremarks are located at any two points along the length of the said bottompart, including the center point, where the two said score marks wouldbe coincident and located equally far from the ends of the saidcontainer.